Finding a Way
by SimplyWolves98
Summary: Feliciano is a prostitute, selling his body for personal reasons, Ludwig is an esteemed CEO of a growing company with a dark past. When Ludwig finds Feliciano about to be raped he takes him to his home. This first meeting leads to later crossings and, quite possibly, help towards Feliciano's personal problem and Ludwig getting over his past. First GerIta fic and sucky summary.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first GerIta fic that I've actually put down on paper and posted so please be gentle. I will tell you all now, but I have no set dates to when these chapters will be posted, so please don't get mad at me if I take forever to post. Feliciano (N. Italy) will be a bit OOC just because of the character I have him as and I hope that won't turn you away from my story. Please R/R, I love reading comments and CONTRUCTIVE criticisms about how to make my writing better. Hetalia does not belong to, if it did there would so many MANY canon couples. . . everywhere.**

**I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I will enjoy writing it**

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Chapter 1

Feliciano's slender fingers clenched the scratchy sheets underneath him. The body above was a heavy weight on Feliciano's back pushing his face farther into the sheets. The body leaned farther forward and panted hotly into Feliciano's ear making his stomach twist and made what little food he had in his system try to make an escape, but he kept it down knowing that if he lost it now he wouldn't get paid. Feliciano went through the motions, moaning at the right times and panting when he felt the body above his have its final release.

The body above Feliciano gave a satisfied grunt before rolling off and promptly falling asleep. At this point it was normal for Feliciano to take his payment from the wallet that sat on the bedside table and take his leave, but for the last week Feliciano, being more desperate for money than he normally was, allowed his buyers to do what they wanted with him. Tonight's client didn't want to use a condom and Feliciano was regretting letting himself go through that. The feeling of wet, stickiness inside him made Feliciano hesitate to move due to the fact that once he did the sticky feeling would try to make an escape and Feliciano learned from past experience to never shower and try to clean himself in the same room as a client.

Knowing he had to leave before the man woke and wanted to go for a second round, Feliciano gritted his teeth and pushed himself carefully into the sitting position. Careful because he didn't want to wake the snoring man beside him and as he moved the felt the client's seed exit his body onto the sheets. Grimacing at the feeling, Feliciano reached over to the innocently placed wallet. The man must have been new to the buying of whores and payment afterword. Anyone else would have taken the whole thing and run, but being raised better than that Feliciano opened the wallet with only the agreed amount in mind. The first thing that greeted the amber-eyed man is a picture. A picture with three people, two small girls, one who looked about eight and the other swaddled in a pink blanket with a thumb in her mouth. The eight year old grinned widely at the camera with two missing front teeth and held the hand of a raven haired woman. The woman looked to be in her early thirties and smiled contently down at the baby in her arms while a golden wedding band shone brightly in the sunlight.

Feliciano frowned and looked over at the man sleeping beside him. This man had a family, a wife and two young girls who probably believed their daddy to be a hero, and here he was in a cheap motel, in the shady part of town, with a whore, not any whore but male whore whom he picked up off the corner of the street. What pushed this man to this point? By the looks of the clothes scattered across the floor, he was well of. Was he just looking for something new? Did he feel any guilt whatsoever? Disgusted with the man drooling onto the obviously not washed pillow cover, Feliciano pulled the agreed amount of money from the wallet (maybe a dollar or two more), tossed it back onto the bedside table, and pushed himself off the bed to collect his scattered clothes from the ground.

Later wondering how his underwear ended up on one of the arms of the fan, Feliciano passed a floor length mirror to pick up his shirt and a glance at his appearance made him stop. His natural bronze tinted skin was filthy with his ribs and hip bones being more prominent than they were a few weeks ago. The golden eyes that were normally lit up in excitement were dull and sunken giving him a haunted look. His hair was matted, probably dirtier than his entire body, and the odd curl that could never be laid down properly was limp and tangled in on itself.

Feliciano saw a pained look cross his face in the reflection before he forced himself to turn away, "I'm doing this for him. We promised to stay together, and this is the only way I can help him keep that promise." Without glancing back at the mirror, Feliciano dressed himself in a shirt two sizes too small that clung to his body like a second skin but at the same time somehow kept his rib bones hidden, a pair of women's short shorts that he found being thrown away, and a pair of ratty sneakers that were falling apart.

Finally dressed Feliciano spared one more glance at the sleeping man before turning away with a scowl. He would never know how someone with a good, happy family life could willingly go and do something as awful as this.

~PAGE BREAK~

The street smelt of urine, sewage, cheap perfume, and other things that Feliciano didn't want to acknowledge. Walking down the dimly lit street, trying not to make eye contact with potential buyers walking up and down the sidewalk, Feliciano suddenly remembers that it had been two weeks since he last visited the hospital and a smile broke across his face.

For the first time in two weeks Feliciano had a skip in his step and an attitude that nothing could bring down. Every two weeks meant he got to see him again! But before he could go Feliciano knew he had to stop by Rome's place to to make himself look presentable.

No one knew Rome's real name, he was just _Rome_. A man who owned a rundown apartment complex, and loaned out rooms to prostitutes who had no where else to go. Feliciano had been living with him for the past three years and the little Italian had his own special place in the older man's heart. Rome knew Feliciano's reasons for doing what he was doing, and stood as a strong support system for him when Feliciano was lost and didn't know what to do. A small smile graced Feliciano's face at the image of Rome's huge grin and almost father-like demeanor.

Without him realizing it, Feliciano had reached the apartment building and would have kept walking if an obnoxiously loud voice hadn't called his name.

"Vargas! Dude Vargas! Where the hell are you going?" Feliciano stopped and looked at the blue-eyed American standing in front of a used-to-be-white wall with two other people. All three of them had blonde hair, just varying in length. Alfred, the one who called out, waved Feliciano over with exaggerated arm movements. With a small smile Feliciano made his way over to the overeager blonde and his two companions. Before Alfred could utter another sound the second blonde pulled Feliciano into a bone-crushing hug. This blonde had a chin almost entirely covered in stubble and wavy, shoulder-length hair that was somehow shiny and grime free. Feliciano made a face at the feeling of the Frenchman's itchy chin against his face.

"Little Feli! Where have you been? I missed you mon ami!" Feliciano, after finally freeing himself from the Frenchman's embrace, pulled out the money he got earlier in the night and waved it for the three blondes to see, "for your information Francis, I was getting paid." Feliciano subtly shifted his legs remembering that he still hadn't showered after "getting paid". A look of sadness and pain crossed Francis' face and he grabbed the small Italian yet again.

"Mon ami you are too innocent and adorable to sell yourself on the streets!" Again Feliciano struggled to get free but with less success. While wiggling and trying to get away from the itchy beard Feliciano had forgotten about the third blonde until he spoke up, "like totally, Francis? Is that necessary? I thought we were going to give Feli his present?" Feliciano immediately stopped struggling and looked at all the blondes in turn.

"What present?" Francis gasped and let go of Feliciano so suddenly that the little Italian almost fell to the ground before catching himself. Francis rushed over and planted himself at Alfred's side, "my Feliks! How on Earth could I have forgotten little Feli's surprise!" Feliciano looked at all three men standing in front of him, a Frenchman, an American, and a Polish man, all three having big smiles on their faces.

Clearing his throat, Alfred stepped forward and began his story, "while I was walking down the street I saw this couple walk out of a restaurant, holding hands, and just being all lovey-dovey, when all of a sudden," Alfred pauses to make his story seem more dramatic, "aliens appear out of nowhere! They surround the couple and start their attack, and so, being the hero and all, I jump in and start to beat on those aliens. Up, down, left, right, and side to side and -" Feliciano, having heard more than his fair share of stories similar to this, just tunes the American out and looked to Feliks.

Feliks' chin length hair waves slightly in the breeze . . . and so did his skirt. Feliks, unlike most of the gay, male prostitute population, took expressing his femininity to a whole new level. He was like a drag queen times a hundred, and he looked damn good doing it. His neon pink stilettos and mid-thigh skirt showed how good his legs looked, and his shirt, well let's just say it was smaller than Feliciano's and didn't cover much of his torso.

Feliks click-clacked over to Feliciano and whispered into his ear, "the couple actually just left your present on the front steps."'

"Nu-uh Feliks! There were aliens and kittens!"

"Kittens?!"

"Evil kittens! With laser eyes and -!"

"ENOUGH! Alfred just give Feli his gift!" Francis' voice cut through the argument and both Alfred and Feliks jerked their heads up. They cleared their throats and gave Feliciano sheepish glances before Alfred pulled a styrofoam container from behind his back.

"We know you haven't had any in a while, so we brought you some." he smell of oregano, tomato, cheese, and many other spices filled the air. Feliciano's eyes widen at the smell and he looked at the three men in shock. They smiled and nodded, pushing the container closer toward the small Italian. With trembling fingers Feliciano took the offered box and opened in slowly. Yellow noodles stained red with fresh tomato sauce and topped with a single meatball were exposed to the night air as well as a squeal of delight. The three blonde men smiled at Feliciano's expression. It had been so long since they had seen his amber eyes lit up so brightly and the smile be of complete sincerity. And even his peculiar curl stood straight out the side of Feliciano's head, and though tangled, looked proud.

Feliciano laughed and threw himself at the blondes, after closing the box of course, one cannot waste good pasta.

"Thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to me." With a final squeeze Feliciano released the men and looked down at the box in his hands with an expression similar to that of a toddler on Christmas morning. The men smiled with faint flushes on their cheeks, when a certain blonde in a mini skirt remembered that Feliciano had been rushing somewhere before they had called him out, "Feli, weren't you, like, going somewhere before we called you over?" Feliciano's eyes widen almost comically, "Oh yea!"

Reluctantly pushing the pasta into Feliks' hands, Feliciano rushed into the old building, to his room and stripped out of his shorts and shirt into a pair of baggy jeans and a sweatshirt. Dressed somewhat more presentable, Feliciano ran back out and snatched his pasta from Feliks, and ran toward the hospital waving good-bye to the men.

Unbeknownst to the French, Polish, American, and Italian, were the two pairs of lustful eyes watching the small Italian sprint to his destination.

~PAGE BREAK~

The hospital looked the same as every other time Feliciano came to visit. White walls, white floor, pictures that tried to make you feel better but left you feeling sicker than when you walked in, and the awful smell of bleach and antiseptic that always managed to give Feliciano a killer headache.

Absentmindedly waving to the nurse at the front desk Feliciano continues walking without slowing. After coming here so often, Feliciano knew the layout of the hospital from the front door to the specific room he was looking for by heart.

Entering the final hallway, Feliciano's fingers tightened around the pasta box in his hands, this hall always freaked him out; it was like a horror movie setting, completely silent, flickering lights, and a dead body slowly crawling its way toward him at the end . . . just without that last part. But today was different; one of the doors was open with light and sound pouring out of it

Feliciano was about to speed walk past the door when a flash of white suddenly crossed his vision followed by a yell.

"My limbs are too awesome to be confined in these plaster prisons of unawesomness!" The explosive exclamation was followed by a much quieter voice, almost a whisper, "Gilbert please lay back down, it's too soon for you to be moving around on your own!"

Eyeing the pillow on the ground as if it would get up and fly back into the room, Feliciano continued walking to the last door on the left.

Pushing the door open, Feliciano's demeanor changed completely, his face brightened and his smile widened from ear to ear, the figure in the hospital bed, dressed in a horrible hospital gown looked pale, but his amber eyes, just a shade darker than Feliciano's, had their normal shine of anger in them, but Feliciano knew to look past the anger to see relief and happiness.

"You're late bastardo!" The words were much like his eyes, layered in anger but with relief and happiness peeking through.

"Hello fratello."


	2. Chapter 2

**Before anything, I want to say that I've realized that Lovino always gets the shit end of the deal in some stories doesn't he?**

**Alright back to business, I want to thank those who favorite this story, it makes me happy to know that other people are enjoying this story and congrats to all those who figured out who was Feli was going to visit in the hospital (probably wasn't that hard). Now you get to know who Lovi's doctor is hon hon hon, and why his is in the hospital *sad crowd noises***

**Enjoy!**

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Chapter 2

Feliciano swallowed the last bite of pasta in the box and stared at his brother who was lying back on the uncomfortable looking hospital bed. Lovino's eyes were closed and his breathing heavy but Feliciano knew he wasn't asleep. Lovino never slept when he visited. Just like how Feliciano never left his brother's side, neither of them wanted to lose any amount of time with the other.

The two brothers sat in complete silence, well almost complete, save for the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor, the dripping from the IV, and the ticking of the overhead clock.

"Aren't those the same clothes you wore the last three times you visited me?" Feliciano started and glanced down at the sweatshirt and jeans he wore. Lovino was right, he had worn these last three visits . . . as well as every visit before that, but he couldn't very well tell Lovino that! He couldn't say that he had no other clothes to wear, aside from the booty shorts and extra-small shirt he wears while looking for clients, that he was living with prostitutes, or even that he was a prostitute himself! Lovino could never find out where that money that paid the hospital bills came from, or how, recently, it's been getting much harder to keep up with those bills.

Feliciano laughed, but it sounded strained even to his ears, "really? I hadn't noticed. I guess I just really like that sweatshirt." Lovino grunted and Feliciano knew he didn't believe him. Feliciano opened his mouth to try and change his brother's mind when the sound of the door opening interrupted him.

Feliciano didn't have to wonder for very long on who had entered the room due to the sudden scent of churros and tomatoes that filled the room and the subtle speeding of Lovino's heart monitor. Turning around Feliciano saw bright green eyes, a messy mop of brown curls, and the blinding grin of Lovino's doctor. Doctor Antonio Fernandez Carriedo. Antonio was the one doctor that allowed Feliciano, with his never consistent "paycheck", to admit Lovino into the hospital with no questions, and Feliciano would be forever grateful to him for that.

"Hola Feli! How have you been?" Feliciano smiles and nods at the excitable man. Antonio, unperturbed by the small Italians silent answer, gave another smile and an one-armed-hug over his shoulders before turning to Lovino.

"Hello Lovi," Antonio's smile softened as his eyes met Lovino's and his voice took on a completely different tone than when he was speaking to Feliciano, "let's listen to those lungs."

Before the stethoscope made contact with Lovino's exposed back, a pair of arms thrashed out and almost hit Antonio in the gut, "don't call me Lovi you dumb tomato bast-," the tirade was cut short by sudden hacking coughs that caused Lovino's body to curl in on itself. In the back of Feliciano's mind he noticed that the heart monitor spiked dramatically as he and Antonio both jumped up and held onto Lovino's shaking shoulders as the coughing fit calmed. Feliciano thought it was over until he saw the drops of red on the starched white bed sheets. Feliciano felt a twinge in his chest and his throat constricted, "fratello please calm down! Yelling only makes it worse!"

Feliciano reprimanded his brother but the words fell on deaf ears. Lovino's body slumped in exhaustion and the heavy breathing of sleep filled the room. Panic filled amber eyes met with calm green ones.

Without a word Antonio gently laid Lovino down onto the bed and gestured for Feliciano to follow him into the hallway. With a final glance at his brother Feliciano followed Antonio. The empty hallway seemed much more forlorn now, darker.

"Feli," Feliciano looked up and the green eyes that, before, were bright with happiness were now dark and morose. Those eyes sent a pang of fear through Feliciano, Antonio never looked like that unless something really bad was about to happen. Antonio rubs his eyes roughly before starting again, "Feliciano, you know he's getting worse." There was no question in Antonio's words, just stating a fact.

"The chemotherapy is doing nothing but making him groggy and more irritable than he normally is. We are probably going to have to gradually wean him off of it and let the cancer take its course."

"No!" Feliciano dug in his sweatshirt pocket and pulled out a fat envelope full of the money that he had gotten from clients, "I have the next installment! Just let him continue with the therapy! Something has to change! God can't be as horrible as to take my only family from me!"

Antonio's shoulders slumped as he stared at the envelope. He sighed and with slight hesitation took the money. His wary eyes never left the envelope as it was transferred from Feliciano's hand to his own as if it would attack. After a few seconds of silence Antonio's slumped shoulders suddenly straightened and a look of determination filled his eyes, "ok Feliciano, I'll put the money in for the therapy," relief flooded Feliciano but that wave was quickly shut off, "but if there's no change then we're going to have to consider taking him off chemo."

Feliciano's swallow was visible to the Spanish man as he looked at his sleeping brother through the door window.

"Fine, this time if the therapy does nothing we can . . . we can stop giving it to him."

Antonio looked relieved, and possibly a bit regretful, at Feliciano's words. He placed a comforting hand on Feliciano's shoulder before quietly entering Lovino's room again. Feliciano stood alone in the hallway trying to compose himself, if he walked back into the room he would break down and he didn't want to do that in front of Lovino, asleep or not. Wiping a stray tear away, Feliciano slaps his cheeks lightly before following after Antonio. After entering the room Feliciano's eyes went straight to Lovino's body. The past two years of chemo didn't look like it was changing his body but to Feliciano, a seasoned hospital visitor, the gradual changes were as clear as day. The little bit of sunlight shining through Lovino's window enunciated the paleness of his skin and the unhealthy sharpness of his cheekbones. The hospital gown hung off his thin frame and billowed out onto the mattress. And even his hair, though it was a miracle that he was able to keep it in the first place, looked faded, malnourished, and the curl that stuck out the side of his head, so much like Feliciano's, was limp and almost parallel to the side of his face.

Lovino had been tormented with lung cancer for the last four years, for the first it had gone unnoticed while the brother's were living on the streets and the last three were spent in the hospital. While the brothers were living on the street Lovino always had a bad cough but he always told Feliciano that it was either allergies or a bad case of the flu and Feliciano believed him. This went on for months until Feliciano came back from collecting money from strangers only to find Lovino collapsed on the ground with blood leaking out the corner of his mouth. He panicked. Feliciano sat next to Lovino's body for about half an hour trying to wake him up and when that didn't work picked up his body and ran. Feliciano probably visited five hospitals and they all refused to help since there was no promise of money from the younger Italian. Lovino still hadn't woken up and Feliciano was about ready to give up. Every doctor he talked to turned him away and he didn't know what to do.

Feliciano was walking down the sidewalk, Lovino still on his back, cold because he had given his ratty jacket to Lovino when suddenly he bumped into something. Feliciano wasn't going fast enough to fall over with the impact but he did stumble slightly before a hand on his shoulder steadied him. Looking up Feliciano is met with bright green eyes and a worried expression, "are you ok?" Feliciano nodded quickly and was about to walk around the man when Lovino's body started to shake violently and heavy, bloody, coughing drenched the back of his shirt. Feliciano quickly tried to place Lovino on the ground to somewhat care for him when his weight was suddenly lifted off of Feliciano's back and a hand grabbed his wrist before running off with both brothers

~PAGE BREAK~

The man, Antonio, was a doctor of a smaller, lesser known care center, how Feliciano didn't see this building after walking around for hours still confused him. After dragging Feliciano and Lovino through the doors, grabbing a syringe and some clear liquid, and finally pulling them both into a small room he released Feliciano's wrist, gently laid Lovino's convulsing body onto a spare bed, and injected him with some of the clear liquid.

Feliciano was nailed to the ground where Antonio had released his wrist, and stared, wide-eyed, as Lovino's body slowed its shaking to a small tremble from time to time.

He stared without moving a muscle, watching the steady rise a fall of Lovino's, now steady, chest. He stood and watched as Antonio placed a gentle hand on Lovino's forehead with a sigh of relief. He was silent as his vision blurred more and more until the dam finally broke. Feliciano's sobs were loud and ugly, tears, snot, and saliva poured down his face making individual tracks and leaving small puddles on the ground. Without him realizing it he had fallen to his knees, exhausted and relieved, at the beginning of his deafening sobs.

A sudden hand on his shoulder made Feliciano jump and turn his drenched face towards the man who had quite possibly saved his brother's life.

"While I was dragging you here I don't think I got your name." Feliciano sniffled and wiped his nose on the back of his sleeve, "I-I'm Feli-Feliciano." Feliciano's hiccups caused his voice to stutter as he answered Antonio's question. Antonio's smile softened and he wiped a few tears from Feliciano's cheeks, "well Feli, can I call you Feli?" With a nod from the small brunette Antonio continued, "how about I make you a deal?"

~PAGE BREAK~

"Feli? Feliciano?" Feliciano started and looked over at Antonio who had a confused and expectant look on his face, "sorry, did you ask me something?"

"Yes, I asked that since you didn't give me a number when Lovi first came here, if you could give me some contact information if his condition changes." Feliciano's breath stuttered as Antonio walked behind him to close the door he had left open. Feliciano had no contact information, no phone number, no email. Selling ones body on the streets, making meager money, then turning around and using that money to pay for a brother's ever escalating hospital bills took away the chance to indulge in those things, not that Feliciano regretted what he did for his brother.

"Um Antonio," Feliciano turned to face the doctor, "can I tell you something?"

"Of course Feli."

"What I want to tell you is secret and. . . and you can't tell Lovi, will you still listen to what I have to say?" Antonio's face stiffened and he was about to open his mouth to say something but then something over Feliciano's head caught his attention, he stared for a few seconds before meeting Feliciano's eyes. "Ok, ok I promise not to tell. What's wrong?"

Feliciano took a deep breath before answering, "I still don't have any contact information."

"That's it? Why don't you want your brother knowing that?"

"Because of the reason why!" Feliciano took a deep breath," do you know where Diamond and Court avenues are?"

"Of course, but that's where. . ." A look of shock crossed Antonio's face as he finally made the connection in his head.

"Yes, it is where the prostitutes live." Antonio's eyes widen even more, "Feli y-you sell your body?"

Feliciano laughed humorlessly, "apparently I'm not very good at keeping a steady job, and with Lovi's hospital bills coming in so fast I had no other choice. But anyway, even without a phone number, I will still be coming in every two weeks, so I'll still see him and any changes in his health."

Antonio's mouth hung open in shock but he was still able to choke out a question, "are you proud of what you are doing?"

"As long as I am helping Lovino, I don't care what I do.

~PAGE BREAK~

After a few more hours with Lovino and Antonio, Feliciano decided to start heading back. The night was overcast so there was no moonlight to make up for the busted street lights every few feet. Feliciano put his hands in his pockets and fingered the slowly growing hole at the bottom while trying not to make eye contact with other people. It was an old habit he had, after selling his body for two and-a-half years he learned that eye contact meant to the buyer that he was willing for the night.

Walking these streets still frightened Feliciano, at night was when the freaks came out to "play." Normally it was just drunks, stumbling around and passing out on street corners, but recently there had been prostitutes who had come back to Rome's apartment bloody, bruised. . . and raped. Male or female, it didn't matter, they were both targeted. Francis and Alfred had both offered to walk Feliciano to and from the hospital for protection, but there was two things wrong with that. One, neither Francis or Alfred knew where Feliciano went every two weeks and he wanted to keep it that way, and two, having one, possibly two, strange, and often scantily clad, men following him around would have had Lovino start to question things that didn't need to be questioned.

Feliciano's thoughts were shattered when the sudden sound of footsteps came from the alleyway next to him. Against his better judgment Feliciano's feet slowed and he looked into the darkness, "hello?" He stood for a few seconds and listened for more footsteps in the darkness. When there was no other sound Feliciano just shrugged and was about to keep walking when a sudden hand over his mouth yanked him into the alleyway.

Feliciano struggled, he pulled at the hand over his mouth and hit the body behind him, but being scrawny and barely eating didn't help when in a fight. The body behind him shook with laughter and a breath, smelling heavily of old whisky, washed over him, "you think you can get away little bird?" A heavy hand on Feliciano's crotch made his panic rise even more, "I've been watching you little bird, waving your body around like the white flag of surrender, but never giving me the time of day. Well now I'm going to take my turn, and I'm not going to let anyone else have you."

"Hey, slow down. You can't have all of him, I want a piece too." Feliciano's wide eyes watched as a new man came forward, a scruffy beard covered his face and sweat poured off of his bald head, "we agreed to share him remember?" The bearded man grabs hold of Feliciano's sweatshirt and yanked, but the fabric, being so threadbare, tore at the yank leaving Feliciano in a piece of fabric half hanging off his body. The bearded man's eyes widened and he licked his lips, "looks like our little bird was ready, he doesn't even have an undershirt on." The man behind Feliciano moved his hand from his mouth, and just as Feliciano opened his mouth to yell for help it clamped onto his throat constricting his airway, "if you make a sound we will make sure you don't make it out of this alive little bird, you don't want that do you?" Feliciano shook his head as much as possible with the hand still around his throat, "good." The man removed his hand, chuckling at Feliciano's gasping breaths, and slowly stroked down Feliciano's chest so that both hands were at his belt buckle. Before Feliciano knew it, his pants had been removed from his body and his face had been pressed into the rough brick of the building closest to him. The bearded man looked Feliciano up and down making him shiver in disgust, "ha! Hey look at this! Little bird already had some today!" Feliciano's eyes widened when he remembered that he still hadn't cleaned up after the client from earlier that day. The man who held Feliciano to the wall growled and pushed Feliciano's face farther into the brick, "so you allow others to touch you but not me? Now I really want to make you mine." Feliciano heard the sound of a zipper coming undone and he knew what was going to happen. Without his consent a whimper slipped through his parted lips as he tried to hold his tears back, without success. "What did I tell you about making a noise little bird? I thought you wanted to li-"

"Hello?" Feliciano's eyes widened at the new voice and his eyes swept towards the alley's opening. He was about to open his mouth to yell for help when the sudden sound of barks and snarls filled the silent alley. The two men behind Feliciano stiffened in fear and the hand holding Feliciano to the wall loosened slightly.

"If there is anyone in there I advise you to come out now or I release Blackie here, and let's say that she's not the nicest around strangers." The snarling continued and the two behind Feliciano finally lost their cool and ran out of the alleyway, pulling their pants up at the same time. With the loss of something holding him up, Feliciano's knees gave out and he fell to the ground with an "oof." The barking stopped and footsteps entered the alley, they faltered slightly before picking up again with more haste, "are you ok?" Feliciano looked up and was met with sky blue eyes and blonde hair strictly swept back, the heavy German accent also proved the man was possibly new to the country.

Feliciano didn't answer and was suddenly pushed over by a wet nose, Feliciano squeaked when he was met with the face of a brown dog, "don't worry, she's friendly, I just said that she wasn't to scare off those other two." Feliciano stared at the man before he couldn't hold it in anymore, he cried. The dog, Blackie, tilted her head confused and the blonde German looked around, panicked, before quickly pulling off his blazer and settling it over Feliciano's shoulders. His hand, hesitating only once, reached down and patted his head. Feliciano's cries slowed and he wondered if the giant man mistook his head for the dogs, when said giant spoke up, "do you, um, do you want me to take you somewhere?" Feliciano nodded and grabbed onto the man's sleeve, "please, take me somewhere safe."

Feliciano sniffed once more for emphasis before his hand slipped from the German's sleeve and darkness took over.


	3. Chapter 3

*hides behind something and offers chapter on platter* I'm sorry! Please don't hate me! I swear I didn't forget about you guys, I got caught up in writing another story for my Creative Writing class and had no time whatsoever. Now, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up, but now I actually have time to write for this instead of school stuff so we'll see how it goes.  
Also, I am using Google Translate and friends that are in our school's German class so if the German makes no sense please tell me and I'll change it as soon as I can.

Now please enjoy this chapter and Feliciano being naked for most of it!

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Chapter 3

Feliciano rolled onto his side and sighed into his pillow. The heavy comforter over his body kept him pleasantly warm, and the large mattress gently hugged his body. He laid for a few more minutes, enjoying the comfort before his body stiffened and he pushed himself up. The unnaturally clean room, with its white walls, hardwood floors, and large, king size bed, was obviously not his room at Rome's place. A large mirror at the opposite end of the room reflected Feliciano and the bed. He was shocked to see a white bandage on his right cheek and dark bruising on his naked biceps and forearms. _What happened? _His fingers brushed the bandage on his face and he winced at how tender the skin underneath was.

A larger bruise caught Feliciano's attention and he was about to poke at it when the smell of food wafted through the room. Sausage, eggs, potatoes, and . . . chocolate? Feliciano froze, had he slept with another client? He hoped that he hadn't because he had trained himself to either wake up before the client or leave as soon as the client fell asleep. There was also the possibility that a family had taken pity on him and let Feliciano spend the night in their home, but even people as nice as that never gave him his own room with a king size bed. Normally it was just the living room couch, and Feliciano was lucky if that couch pulled out into a small bed.

Still contemplating what could have happened, Feliciano didn't hear the sound of nails clicking on the floor until a lithe body entered the room and stood at the edge of his bed, huffing quietly. Feliciano jumped and looked into the dark eyes of a German Shepard. The large dog stared at him with wide eyes before barking loudly and jumping onto the bed. With a girlish squeal, Feliciano threw the blanket over his head and hoped that the old 'if I can't see you, you can't see me' trick would work. The dog huffed again almost in laughter and insistently prodded its nose against Feliciano's blanket covered back. Feliciano's body curled into the fetal position, trying to makes itself a smaller target to the persistent animal and its curiosity. A gasp left him when the dog suddenly laid its body on top his growling playfully into his side.

Feliciano was about to pass out from air loss and fear when a sharp voice in German called to the dog. It stilled and quickly jumped off of the bed and by the sound of its nails clicking on the ground, moved to the other side of the room. Feliciano's let out a sigh before he peeked out the edge of the blankets. The blonde German from the night before stood in the doorway with a tray piled high with food. Feliciano smiled and was about to pull himself completely out from under the blanket, clothing or not, when a smaller body peeked their head around his the man's legs. The new person, a young girl, looked shyly from behind the blonde, her tiny hands gripping his perfectly pressed slacks.

Feliciano's eyes moved from the man's face to the small girl's partially hidden one and back again finding the similarities. She had straw blonde hair much like her father's, just held up in two pigtails. And her eyes, instead of being a striking blue were a dark evergreen. The blonde man began to move forward into the room, plate still balanced in his hands toward the bed, where Feliciano was still curled up on, with his daughter still glued to his side.

Feliciano's sat up, much more carefully, keeping a hold of the blanket around his shoulders to preserve the young girl's innocence. By the time the tall male made it to the edge of the bed, the girl hadn't moved from her position of being half hidden behind her father.

"Um, you must be hungry," the man placed the tray on Feliciano's lap and stood quietly as he began to dig into the food. He moaned quietly and his eyes fluttered shut as the taste of the food hits his tongue. Feliciano knew he shouldn't eat too much since his stomach was practically empty and he would be sick later, but he just couldn't help it, he hadn't had a good, full breakfast in so long.

Half the plate was already gone when the blonde cleared his throat, "I know I didn't tell you this last night, but my name Ludwig. Ludwig Beilschmidt," Ludwig lowered his hand to the top of his daughter's head, almost for comfort, and started speaking again, "I wasn't able to introduce myself last night. Are you ok?" Feliciano swallowed the food in his mouth before speaking, he may have been a prostitute but Rome made sure to teach everyone in the house decent table manners.

"My name is Feliciano Vargas, but my friends call me Feli! I don't remember much, but thank you for taking me in for the night and for breakfast. Once I finish, I'll get dressed and be out of your hair I promise." Feliciano was about to continue when a choking sound coming from Ludwig stopped him. Ludwig's face had lost some of its color, and the movement of his hand in his daughter's head had stopped, "you don't remember?" Feliciano shoved another forkful of food into his mouth before looking at Ludwig with stuffed cheeks and a confused look on his face. Ludwig looked around the room for a minute before his eyes fell on the German Shepherd still sitting against the wall who still seemed to be eyeballing Feliciano as he ate his breakfast. Ludwig looked back and forth between his daughter, still slightly hidden behind his legs, and the dog that seemed to want to jump back on the bed as soon as it's owner left the room and seemed to come to a decision. He squatted so he was able to look his daughter in the eye and spoke to her in German.

"Adalicia, sie sollte sich jeder nehmen, um zu spielen."

The girl (Adalicia?) looked from her father to the dog, before giving a long, seemingly glare-like look to Feliciano and walked out of the room. The dog looked at him almost longingly before following Adalicia, much more slowly than her, it's clicking nails faded until they disappeared behind the closing of a door. After the finalizing slam of the door, the silence between Feliciano and Ludwig extended an uncomfortable amount of time, the little food left over on his plate forgotten and growing cold.

"What do I not remember?" He looked up at the tall German, who shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. Ludwig scratched the back of his neck and cleared his throat before squaring his shoulders and looking Feliciano in the eye.

"What do you remember of last night?" The auburn head of hair cocked in confusion at the question but answered anyway.

"I remember leaving the hospital, from visiting my brother, and as I was walking away I-" Feliciano's voice dropped off and his brow furrowed in confusion. What had happened last night?

Ludwig looked on as the smaller man's eyes squinted in concentration and he brought his bruised hand up to rub at his forehead. He knew something had changed when Feliciano's arm stopped midway to his head and his eyes connected to the numerous bruises covering the skin. A slight tremble started to go through him but aside from the periodic tremors, the small body was deathly still. Almost as if he wasn't there anymore.

Feliciano's mind was filled with flashes, flashes of dark alleys, whiskey-ladened breaths, too-heavy bodies, and a feeling of complete helplessness. The trembling in his body gradually got faster and his breathing hitched in his throat. Feliciano heard a faint voice somewhere, but the words were garbled and seemed to be at the end of a very long tunnel. His chest felt tight and there wasn't enough air to fill them. The room was closing in around him constricting him from moving. A heartbeat filled the small area drowning out the faint voice still calling out to him.

Feliciano thought he was going to be stuck in this place, this place of no air and small rooms, of thudding heartbeats and aloneness, but a touch on his arm took his attention away from that crushing room. The touch brought a bit of calm but the voice that came with it pulled him away completely.

"Feliciano! Feliciano look at me! You are ok, you're here with me!" The voice was much closer now, encircling Feliciano in warm comfort and calming his ragged breathing. His vision cleared and his shoulders sagged from their tensed position, shaking slightly from the exertion. During his episode Feliciano's body had curled in on itself and it creaked as he pulled himself apart to stare into Ludwig's face. The blonde man's face looked troubled as if he didn't know what to do but was still doing his best to calm Feliciano. Ludwig reached out to place his hand on Feliciano's head when slender fingers suddenly had a vice-like grip on his wrist.

"Please. . . please tell me it didn't happen. Please tell me I wasn't r-r-" The rest of the word refused to come out of Feliciano's mouth and he ended up just sitting, stuttering over the same letter, his grip slowly growing looser on Ludwig's wrist until it fell back limply onto the mattress. Ludwig's hand fell back to the mattress as well, nearly touching Feliciano's leg that was underneath the blanket.

"No, nothing happened. I stopped them before they . . . did anything." Feliciano's breath shuddered before slowly beginning to calm. Without meaning to he leaned forward and suddenly his forehead was pressed into the larger German's neck. He paused and breathed in the scent of the musky cologne surrounding the larger body and let himself relax.

"Thank you." A large hand gently patted the light brown head under his chin, still slightly awkward. This went on for a few moments before Ludwig cleared his throat and, with a final pat to Feliciano's head, pulled away, "I'll go heat up your food, it must be cold." With that, Ludwig grabbed the plate from Feliciano's lap and quickly made his way from the room.

Feliciano blinked a few times, missing the heat against his front, before pulling the blanket more securely around his shoulders. With a sheet covered fist he wiped at the leftover dampness that Ludwig had missed off of his cheeks and laid back down on the pillows.

_So nothing happened, thank God. What would've happened to me if Ludwig hadn't been there when he was?_

Feliciano thought more and more about the night prior, his memory coming back in small images and senses. Not only had Ludwig scared off Feliciano's potential attackers, but he also carried him back after he had passed out, dressed his wounds, gave up a bed that was most likely his, and had even given him food in the morning. What had Feliciano given him, other than dirty sheets and less food? He had no money; all of it had gone toward Lovino's therapy.

There had to be something Feliciano could do to pay the man back. A sudden idea passed through the Italian's head, he mulled it over before concluding what he was going to do.

_As long as his daughter stays outside with the dogs everything should be fine._

Feliciano was so deep in thought that he didn't hear Ludwig enter the room again until the larger man cleared his throat. Looking up Feliciano watched as the light steam rose from the plate.

"You can put the food on the dresser. I'm not very hungry right now." Ludwig gave a jerky nod and placed the food on the bedside table. It looked like he was going to make another speedy exit, but Feliciano grabbed onto his wrist before he could. He eyed the door, slightly open, enough space to hear if a door opens.

"Please sit down."

Once Ludwig was seated gingerly on the edge of the bed, Feliciano shot one more glance toward the door before pushing the blanket off of his naked shoulders, letting it pool around his hips, and crawling into the German's lap.

"I don't have any money but I do have a way to pay you back."

He leaned forward and began to kiss and suck on Ludwig's neck. Said German stiffened and stopped breathing. Feliciano continued his ministrations, gradually moving lower and lifting the larger man's shirt when suddenly a pair of hands grabbed his waist. Feliciano's body froze almost as much as Ludwig's.

The previous night flashed through his head again, the feeling the rough brick against his cheek, and the fear of knowing he was powerless to defend himself,

_Please don't make me do this!_

Tears began to leak from underneath Feliciano's closed eyelids onto the fabric of Ludwig's shirt. The hands holding his waist loosened and moved to his shoulders, gently pushing him back. Ocean blue eyes stared into tear-filled amber, before Feliciano's head was moved to the crook of Ludwig's neck with a soft hand.

_How did we end up here again?_

Ludwig's awkward hand patted Feliciano on the back, still unsure in it's movements. Once the initial shock of being stopped _and _comforted wore off, Feliciano wrapped his arms securely around the German's chest and nuzzled his head farther into his neck.

The two sat in silence, before Feliciano felt Ludwig's chest rumble as he cleared his throat to speak, "you were speaking of paying me back before." Feliciano stiffened again, "as a way of payment, instead of doing-" Feliciano felt Ludwig swallow, "that, how about you come with me to see my brother?"

~PAGE BREAK~

After Feliciano was able to stop staring in shock at what Ludwig had said he quickly agreed. As soon as Feliciano crawled off of Ludwig's lap, and covered everything that needed to be covered, the sound of a door opening and a light voice calling out, "vati?" made the blonde man jump up and move toward the door.

Before he made it over the threshold completely, Ludwig turned back toward Feliciano, "if you wait a few moments, I can get you some clothes to wear." Feliciano nodded while pulling the plate that had been set on the bedside table onto his lap.

"I'll be here."

Ludwig nodded, gave me one last look, and left leaving the door partially open. As soon as his shadow was out of sight Feliciano dropped the fork back onto the plate. Going to visit a hospital with him as payment for letting me stay here, eat his food, and having him loan me his clothing. And not forgetting what he had done the night before. How was that equal payment?

Feliciano sat and thought on it until he began to feel a slight throbbing from behind his eyes. He grimaced and rubbed at his temples, "it doesn't make sense, but when I am able to pay him back, whenever that might be, I will." The words were whispered to himself, and with a final, gentle, nod Feliciano confirmed his plan.

He was about to relax back onto the bed and wait to Ludwig, but the sound of nails on the ground slowly growing closer made Feliciano jump out from under the sheets, uncaring of his nakedness, and sprint to the door to close it securely. Hearing the whine from behind the wood made Feliciano sign and slink back toward the bed.

Now that he was safe he could wait for Ludwig in peace.


	4. Chapter 4

Feliciano flapped his arms and twisted his torso from side-to-side, enjoying the largeness of Ludwig's borrowed shirt. The soft, billowy fabric of the clothes felt amazing against his tender skin. Said blonde was still looking for a pair of pants that Feliciano wouldn't constantly trip over. The large man was bent over his dresser, opening and closing drawers, looking through the clothes, but still keeping everything neat.

Feliciano sat with crossed legs on the bed, still twisting and flapping. He giggled slightly when his hands disappeared into the too-long sleeves.

"Um," Feliciano jerked his eyes away from the sleeves to where Ludwig was holding a pair of sweats that were a bit smaller than the ones he'd been looking through earlier, "these pants belong to mein bruder. You can borrow them for the time being since I don't think he'll be using them anytime soon."

"Oh, thank you." Feliciano took the loose sweats from Ludwig and quickly stood to pull them on. Once the strings were securely tied around his waist, not that they did much since the pants still hung low on his hips, Ludwig nodded once before turning toward the door.

"When you are ready, Adalicia and I will be in the living room."

"The dogs are outside right?" Ludwig gave a small chuckle.

"Yes, they are all in the backyard." Content with the answer, Feliciano nodded and turned back toward the bed hearing the door close behind him. Rushing forward, Feliciano quickly made up the bed. Or tried to at least, leaving wrinkled sheets, skewed pillows, and hastily folded clothes.

"Perfect." Feliciano gave a firm nod and smiled at his handiwork before turning and opening the door to leave the room. Ludwig's home was not as large as he first thought, across from the room where he had stayed there was another door which he assumed was either Ludwig's or his daughter's room. A few feet of hallway lead to an open living room separated from the kitchen by a thin bar. Sitting together on the long couch was Adalicia and Ludwig, the small girl sitting on the larger man's lap. Before Feliciano stepped fully into the room quiet words in German stopped him. Ludwig was bent forward slightly, bringing his face closer to his daughter's. Adalicia huffed and crossed her small arms over her chest, obviously not happy with what her father had just told her.

Feliciano waited a few more moments, hearing Ludwig say a few more words in German before the sound of little feet hitting the ground told him that their conversation was over. Still standing in the shadows Feliciano watched as Adalicia made her way into the kitchen, the clammer of opened and closed cabinet doors filling the air. A muffled thump pulled his attention back to Ludwig as he fell back against the couch with a sigh and rubbed his face with his hands.

He looked exhausted. His clothes rumpled and hair falling out of it's strictly pulled back style from the night before. Ludwig let out a loud yawn, cleared his throat, and let his arms fall back onto the couch cushions. On silent feet, Feliciano made his way out of the hallway and quickly settled himself on the couch next to Ludwig. Said German slightly jerked away from the sudden presence but settled once again when he saw the sagging clothes on thin shoulders.

"Are you okay?"

"Ah, ja, just tired." His exhaustion seemed to seep into the air around him.

"Are you ready to-"

"When was the last time you've slept?" Bright blue eyes darted back to Feliciano, the small Italian quickly pushing himself up onto his knees and gently brushing the pads of his thumbs over the bags underneath Ludwig's eyes. "Rome always says that one should sleep as soon as they begin to feel tired. It's a signal that your body needs to rest, and if you do good by your body then your body will do good by you." Feliciano smiled at Ludwig while the man just stared with widened eyes.

"Vati?"Ludwig's eyes widened even more and he tore his face away from Feliciano's hands. Standing next to the bar was Adalicia, her mouth was smudged with what looked like chocolate from whatever she had found to snack on and her eyes bored into Feliciano who was still kneeling on the couch.

"Wann besuchen wir Onkel Gilbert?" Ludwig glances once more toward Feliciano before pushing himself off of the couch and toward his daughter. He reached and grabbed a napkin and quickly cleaned off her face, responding to her question in German before turning back to where Feliciano had been watching from the couch.

"If you are ready, we can leave now?" Feliciano looked from the father to his daughter, before nodding and rushing over to the front door and grabbing his tape covered shoes. Ludwig gave them a long look.

"Remind me to get you new shoes before the day is over."

~PAGE BREAK~

The drive from Ludwig's home to the hospital was quiet. The only real exciting part of the trip was when they had actually stopped to get Feliciano some new shoes, even though the small Italian proclaimed multiple times that he was fine with the ones he had. Feliciano now had a new pair, the old ones left behind in a dumpster near the store. The rest of the drive was a blur of dozing in and out for Feliciano until his shoulder was shaken lightly and he jerked forward, almost knocking heads with Ludwig.

"We're here." Ludwig quickly stood himself back up outside of Feliciano's door, taking hold of Adalicia's hand. The small girl still hadn't warmed to Feliciano, keeping to herself during the car ride and once again hiding behind Ludwig's legs. The smile that had begun to grow on Feliciano's face quickly stopped and faded as he took in the building behind Ludwig and Adalicia.

"Your brother is here?" Feliciano's eyes still hadn't left the building.

"Ja, a close friend of his works here so he refused any other hospital." He looked over his shoulder and gave a small smiled.

"Come on, Gilbert is going to come looking for us if we don't head in soon." Turning, Ludwig lightly tugged at Adalicia's arm until she falls into step at his side. Feliciano was left standing by Ludwig's car until he shook himself out of his stupor and made his way after the two blondes.


	5. Chapter 5

_What is this? Two Chapters? From someone who hasn't updated in a year?_

_I want to apologize for the lateness of this chapter, and want to thank those of you who have stayed with me. Chapters 4 and 5 are kinda short so I'm uploading them together. _

_Hope you enjoy 3_

The glass door slide open quietly in front of Ludwig's broad form, a small brunette and an even smaller blonde following close after him. The receptionist behind the front desk, the same one from the day before when Feliciano came to visit, quickly tried to straighten her scrubs and catch the few flyaway hairs around her head.

"Mr. Beilschmidt! Come to visit your brother?" Ludwig glanced over at the woman and Ludwig watched as his shoulder rose and fell in a sigh, as if this wasn't the first time this had happened.

"I have, but I would like to speak with the doctor first, if I may."

"Of course sir, let go back and get him." She quickly stood, fixed her scrubs one last time and, with a final smile in Ludwig's direction, made her way down a familiar hallway. Feliciano watched until turned down a connecting hallway and disappeared from his sight.

"Are you okay?" Feliciano jumped and tried to cover up the squeak that escaped his mouth. He turned and looked up at Ludwig whose forehead was scrunched in confusion.

"Y-yes, I'm fine." Feliciano felt his face heat and suddenly found his new shoes insanely interesting. Ludwig gave a confused grunt before the sound of feet in the hallway grabbed his attention.

"Ludwig!" Antonio's voice filled the small waiting room, "how are you my friend? The two men embraced and exchanged pleasantries, Antonio even kneeled down to pull Adalicia up onto his hip making the small girl giggle. Feliciano watched all of this from behind Ludwig, still hidden from Antonio's view. _I shouldn't be here._

Within a few seconds Feliciano's mind was made up, and by the time Ludwig turned to introduce him, he was long gone.

~PAGE BREAK~

The walk back to Rome's place was quiet. Feliciano kept to himself, eyes on the concrete in front of him, and arms crossed tightly over his chest. He thought back to Ludwig and his daughter, they both seemed to be happy, though Ludwig was a bit more on the tired side, but happy nonetheless.

He had overstayed his welcome, and so him leaving was the best thing for him to do right? After they visited Ludwig's brother, he would have had to leave anyway, so how bad could it have been if he left a little sooner? _Probably made things a little easier for him. _

Feliciano was so lost in thought that the sounds of shoes hitting the ground, making their way towards him didn't register until two arms were wrapped around his sides. The night prior suddenly being brought to the forefront of his mind, Feliciano quickly shouted out and began kicking his legs, trying to get the mysterious figure away from him.

"Feli! Feli wait! It's just me!" Rome's voice filled his head and Feliciano's body went limp in the larger man's arms. Once the arms were loosened, Feliciano quickly turned and and threw his arms around Rome's neck, the man wrapped him in a hug once again, much more hesitant this time, and gently patted Feliciano's back.

"My little Feli, where have you been? We have all been worried sick about you!" Feliciano knew that he was being reprimanded but Rome's voice was soft and gentle, probably because of his response to his first hug. Feliciano nuzzled his face once more into Rome's shoulder before pulling away with a watery smile.

"I'm sorry, if we head back now I can tell everyone at once, so I won't need to repeat." Rome nodded and gestured for Feliciano to begin walking. The small Italian was about to move forward, but stopped and grabbed hold of Rome's pinkie and ring finger. He looked over at Feliciano with a raised eyebrow but didn't pull away. The two made their way back home that way, Feliciano feeling safe and Rome, content.

~PAGE BREAK~

Once Feliciano had finished explaining to everyone why he hadn't come home, omitting a few details so they would go on a hunting spree in the middle of the day, he made his way quietly up to his room. Everything was where he had left it the day before; his street clothes, his second pair of ratty shoes, and an empty envelope that he would have to fill within two weeks.

He sighed and quickly made his way towards the bed, shedding clothes until the cool air chilled his skin. Feliciano looked at the clothes, now lying on his bed. He would have to return these, he couldn't keep something that was supposed to be borrowed. . . But he also couldn't show up at Ludwig's house in his street clothes since his other ones had been torn beyond salvaging.

Better question, where did the ma live? Both going to and leaving, Feliciano had been either passed out or dozing.

"Well I'm in a pickle." The words fell flat, and the clothes were still laid out on the bed, giving no new information to where Ludwig's house was. With a final sigh, Feliciano scooted the clothes toward the end of his bed, and quickly made himself comfortable under the sheets. It may have been the middle of the day, but when you are tired it-

"Means that the body needs rest."

"Who are you talking to Feli?" Feliciano looked over to see Francis looking in from the hallway.

"No one, I'm just wondering when the last time Ludwig had a siesta was."

"If he's anything like how you described him, he doesn't seem the type to take siestas." Feliciano's eyebrows scrunched and Francis tried to muffle his chuckle and the constipated look on the young man's face.

"Well that's just not right, everyone needs siestas."

"Well, maybe you need to be the one to teach him that." Feliciano blinked silently toward the ceiling, "see you later Feli, I'm heading out early. Enjoy your siesta." With a final wave, Francis made his way passed Feliciano's door.

He blinked once again, "I need to be the one to teach him."


End file.
